Tuesday, June 3, 2008

Buckeye Soul Music Series: Justin Holland, African American Classical Guitarist & Composer

BuckeyeSoul.com
Music Series: Justin Holland
By The Buckeye Soul Team on May 16th, 2008. Justin Holland was born in slave-holding Virginia in 1819 to free Black parents. At the age of 14, he left home and traveled to Boston where we took up the study of music under the tutelage of Senor Mariano Perez. In 1841, Holland enrolled in Oberlin College here in Ohio. Oberlin was the first college in the United States to regularly admit Black students. At Oberlin, Holland continued his music studies. In 1845, he moved to Cleveland, Ohio, where he established himself as a teacher of classical guitar.

Impact On Classical Guitar & Society
After moving to Cleveland, Holland’s reputation as a professional and scholar in classical guitar spread. His reference book, Holland’s Method, which was published in 1876. Holland was also a man of the people. He worked to keep the Underground Railroad going in Ohio and served as an assistant secretary and member of council at National and State Negro Conventions, where he worked alongside such noted activists as Frederick Douglass.

Justin Holland Today
Holland was known to have created over 35 original pieces. Here is a selection we found on the web titled Carnival of Venice Fantasie (Mento Music Press SMM 3023 (1994); American Pioneers of the Classic Guitar; Douglas Back, Guitar). More information about Justin Holland can be found at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Oberlin College, as well as the US Library of Congress. [Justin Holland is also profiled at AfriClassical.com, dedicated to African Heritage in Classical Music]






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